Can Music Therapy Help Aid the College Mental Health Crisis?

As I enter my last year at the University of Houston, I find myself reflecting on the emotional rollercoaster I have endured.

Walking through the parking garage on campus recently, I noticed new signs on the fifth floor encouraging students to reach out for help. The signs stopped me in my tracks and made me wonder: Is there a better way to reach students who are hurting?

The mental health crisis on college campuses is not new. In my first year at the University of Houston during the 2022-2023 school year, two students died by suicide, marking a stressful time for campus staff and students alike. A moment that stayed with me over the years and inspired me to understand the causes of distress among college students

“Common barriers that students face include cost, location, cultural barriers and stigmas that have been perpetuated through society,” said Jaylyn Woods, a licensed professional counselor at the University of Houston Counseling and Psychological Services, known as CAPS. “I believe there is still a stigma surrounding mental health, but people are becoming more open to discussing mental health struggles.”

One University of Houston communication student, Tony Lam, expressed a disconnect with the mental health services offered on campus. “I think that it is effective if done properly, but I feel most mental health outreach is lackluster and can at times not be very helpful since most don’t actually reach out, follow up, or care like claimed,” he said.

CAPS was behind those signs I spotted in the parking garage, and the center offers more than most students realize. Services are free and available at both the main campus and the Sugar Land campus. Embedded clinicians are stationed across campus, mobile response clinicians are available in the evening hours, and students have around-the-clock access through an after-hours crisis line and peer support platforms.

Music as a Solution

During my college years, music has been one of my go-to outlets, whether bonding with friends over concerts or connecting through a shared love of an artist. So I began to question whether research confirms music as a legitimate emotional outlet.

Music therapy is a clinical discipline in which credentialed therapists use music production processes to address psychological, emotional and social goals. Research published in Music Therapy Perspectives by Linda F. Bednarz and Bob Nikkel found that activities like music discussions, group music making and expressive exercises helped young adults dealing with mental illness and substance use improve their quality of life.

A 2022 systematic review by Aaron Rodwin and colleagues in the Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal found that music-based interventions showed meaningful results for reducing anxiety, depression and other internalizing symptoms in adolescents and young adults. The review did flag that most studies focused on adolescents, and research targeting college-age young adults specifically remains thin.

Does It Actually Work?

The research is pointing in a promising direction. A 2025 paper in Frontiers in Psychiatry by John H. Head and Namrata N. Vasquez argues that four core music therapy methods identified by scholar Kenneth Bruscia can be meaningfully woven into existing practices like cognitive behavioral therapy.

The four methods include receptive listening, re-creation, improvisation, and composition. Each method gives a therapist a different entry point depending on where a client is emotionally. Students who cannot articulate why they feel anxious might be able to improvise it, write a lyric about it, or have a song express something words cannot.

Music therapy, by its nature, tends to be communal. Whether students are playing instruments together, reacting to shared lyrics, or building a playlist in a group setting, they are practicing connection.

Connection proves to be a key to soothing mental distress. A 2025 systematic review by Li Ruihua and colleagues, published in PLOS ONE, examined 51 studies and found that social support is one of the most powerful factors shaping college student mental health, linked directly to lower stress, greater resilience and higher life satisfaction. Forming connections seems to be a core struggle for college students, and music can be a meaningful way to build new bonds.

The Gaps That Remain

Music therapy, for all its promise, is not yet a widespread fixture of campus mental health infrastructure. Certified music therapists are a specialized workforce, and programs require funding that some universities simply do not have.

Not all uses of music carry the same therapeutic benefit. Head and Vasquez also caution that music can intensify depression and emotional dysregulation when used in unhealthy or unintentional ways. For campus programs to truly harness music’s potential, clinicians must be trained to navigate both its promise and its risks.

Cultural considerations also matter. Woods named cultural barriers directly as one of the top obstacles students face in accessing mental health services. The University of Houston is one of the most diverse campuses in the nation, and cultural awareness remains vital in effective outreach.

Woods’ advice for recognizing when professional support becomes necessary is straightforward. “Everyone experiences different emotions, but when it begins to affect your ability to function and you’ve utilized your normal coping skills, it’s time to seek help,” Woods said.

While CAPS offers meaningful mental health guidance, music might just be the key to opening students’ minds toward reaching out and building connections with their peers. Music helped me through my college years and I hope it can do the same for future students.